About

Julia Child once said, "It is hard to imagine a civilisation without onions."

I'd like to say, respectfully, that it can be done. You can enjoy good, flavourful, low FODMAP food.

You just have to get your hands dirty.

Hi! I’m Nataliya, thanks for stopping by.

I'm a physiotherapist from Australia who is currently living in the Pacific Northwest of the USA. I grew up in the southeast suburbs of Melbourne and completed my B. Physiotherapy at the University of Melbourne; I’m a self-confessed dessert-aholic who likes to cook but loves to bake; I also love to travel and explore the great outdoors, or can happily lose myself in a good book for an entire weekend, much to my husband's chagrin. My husband, Ev, is a computer geek who also loves to cook, so, between the two of us, we do alright. We have two dogs, Bailey and Nellie, and a cat called Archie, that complete our little family (photos below).

This website began, initially, as Not From A Packet Mix, before I changed to The Friendly Gourmand in February 2017. The name is a better fit, thanks to my unique surname (Friend), my need to eat food intolerance "friendly" foods and my love of baking and good food in general. It's a place where I aim to provide both delicious, (mostly) healthy recipes, as well as up to date, science-based resources for those tackling the low FODMAP diet or eating gluten free for health reasons.

My own FODMAP journey began back at the beginning of 2006, when the IBS that had niggled at me all my life turned into a full on attack that made studying, work and socialising almost impossible, not to mention embarrassing, for a shy 18 year old. After a few months of drastically increased symptoms, my mum pushed me to see our GP, who eventually referred me on - after an initial dud of a GI referral - to a great gastroenterologist, who has sadly since retired. By the end of the year I knew I didn't have coeliac disease, inflammatory bowel disease or lactose intolerance - thankfully - but I did have fructose malabsorption.

Luckily I had just completed a semester of organic chemistry, so I at least knew what fructose was and could understand the science behind the diet. The fructose friendly/low FODMAP diet that I followed (before completing food challenges) changed my life for the better. Since then, a lot of research has been completed on the diet, and the list of tested foods has increased exponentially. There are some really great resources available today and I strongly suggest that you look into them, along with obtaining the help of a qualified dietitian or nutritionist trained in the low FODMAP diet.

I am not a medical doctor or nutrition/dietetics professional. This website is not meant to replace the assessment and instruction of a relevantly qualified health professional.